Minimodel.sk Advent 2021, Day 2: Renault 21 Nevada

 Day 2 brings the Renault 21 Nevada, #363 from the 1990 edition of the Dakar, which unfortunately had to abandon the race due to mechanical issues.

A single sheet model, with both a simple and a more complex version to build, is available for download.

Minimodel.sk Advent 2021, Day 1: DAF 2800 NTT "De Neus"

 For the third year in a row, friends of the blog, www.minimodel.sk are hosting an Advent model gift event. Last year it was excursion and expeditionary vehicles, this year's theme is Dakar.

Today's offering is the DAF Trucks 2800 NTT, known as the "De Neus"(the nose), which in 1982, driven by Jan De Rooy finished 67th, and the second truck dropped out due to mechanical issues, started the Truck mystique for me in the Dakar rally.

FDS' version of the "De Neus" is represented in 1:100, over two sheets, and a construction diagram is included on the second sheet.

Head on over to www.minimodel.sk or www.minimodel.cz, and click on FDS and then Advent to download your own copy of the model.

**Update** It was not noticed until last night, but the right side of the box was missing the Dutch DealerTeam graphic, the file has been updated, and uploaded, so go get the update.

Getting your Dakar fix from Amazon

In my best Thomas Magnum voice, "I know what you are thinking...." he isn't going to cut up a book is he?

For this entry I am.

I first became aware of this book, Voitures de Course by Patrick Pasques on Amazon, and I bought the original Frech version, that is now in the collection part.

After that, the goal was to find another copy, or maybe even an English version of the book.

Low and behold, I was able to land two copies of the English/Italian edition, if you want a copy for yourself and your collection, visit the link here.

Below is the Dakar content from the book, a Mitsubishi Lancer in the colors of the Repsol Ralliart team from the 2009 Dakar.

You get two copies of the car, the full color version, and an outline version to color yourself.

I have also attached the two covers of the two books I have in my collection.

An update will come once I have both versions of the Lancer made.

Paper Dakar: The Facebook Group

Sooner or later one had to be created, right? 

Back in 2018 when I was thinking about creating this group on Facebook, wanting to showcase all the different Dakar models that were being released, which incidentially was the same the reason I started this blog way back then. 

Seems that doing something related to Dakar on a 10 year cycle is my thing, whodathunkit? 

You can visit the group by following the link here, or by clicking on the link down on the left side of the blog.

An Oversized Minibox Model

As is usually the case, while searching for something of specific interest, something will catch my interest, and will drag me down that rabbit hole, hopefully not too deep, at least this time it was a shallow depression. 

Truckbox, a Czech promotional printing company creates gift boxes in various shapes and sizes, but with a Truck and Van bent to it. 

And one of the pictures on their website is of a Tatra Phoenix race truck from the Buggyra team

There was also another image I came across, and this looked like a wine bottle giftbox or maybe had a nice sausage in it.

The Phoenix would be the largest Minibox like model I have seen, or be the largest truck in my collection.

Want fries with your Dakar?

One of the fun things about Dakar are the strange or interesting vehicles that compete in the race, everything from Vespa scooters, the lowly Citroen CV2 or a massive 8x8 truck(looking at you Studebaker), new fuels have been introduced over the years, I have previously written about a race car running on used Tempura frying oil, well in 2009, they did something similar, a Belgian team running a Toyota HiLux pickup truck, with what most would consider should be belong in your local McDonalds, a deep fat fryer unit. This team reused the used up cooking oil, after filtration, as bio diesel, to compete in that years' race. Volker has released a model of this car, and you can get it from his racepaper.de site, by clicking on the Rallye tab, and clicking on Dakar(near the bottom of the page) and going to the 3rd page of models, and comes in his standard 1:43 scale. Of course I had to build this model

Reports say that the 2009 Bivouac was the best smelling one in a long time.

Countdown to Dakar

Dakar Museum

I have written about Volker and his Racepaper site and his Dakar models. In recent years Volker has released models in 1:87 scale, which here in the United States is H0 scale, the same as H0 trains. If you follow Volker, and his yearly advent release of models, you might have seen his H0 scale RVs and campers, but as of last year, he has released various parts to build a museum for his H0 scale Dakar models. You can find the parts for the museum at the above mentioned link, just scroll down to Projekt87 and click on Dakar Museum, you will also see links to the numbers 83 and 85, those are the years Volker has release some of the interesting or noteworthy racecars from those years. You can download the Mercedes 280 that Jacky Ickx drove to victory that year, or you can download the 6-wheeled Mercedes 280 which unfortunately had to adbandon the race, but looks soo cool in the Zebra stripes. If I can find the pictures that Volker posted of his Museum build, I will share them in an edit.

FENOMÉN DAKAR

If you happen to find yourself in Police nad Metují in the Czech Republic, and you want to visit a local museum or two, may I suggest the Muzeum papírových modelů, the Museum of Paper Models. Starting on November 6th 2021, they will have an exhibit of Dakar themed paper models. At least two friends of this blog will be showcased, Roman Hruška and Jiří Vintr, of Spida Models and Vimos Models respectively.

 

I wish I was able to visit the museum and visit with my Czech friends, and drool over the collected models, I will have to be satisfied with pictures of the exhibit.

I don't know until when the exhibit will run to, but I will post an edit once I find out. **Update** The exhibition will run until the Spring of 2022, for times and directions i invite you to visit http://mpmpm.cz/

Dakar, Super Deformed Style

You might have seen the SD Gundams or similar mecha or characters, well vehicles are not immune to the SD treatment either.

Oniya, a Japanese paper model designer has recreated various rally, sportscars and even the record breaking Suzuki Grand Vitara of Monster Nakajima, representing the record breaking car from the 2007 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, in the Super Deformed style.

He even recreated the 2007 and 2008 entries from Hino Team Sugawara.

Oniya posted on his website both team trucks, driven by Teru and Yoshi Sugawara.

One of the interesting things about Team Sugawara, at least to me, they have the distinction of being recognized by the Guinness World Records, as the only team with 25 consecutive appearances in the Dakar rally, from 1983 to 2007.

Oniya released the models in pepakura's pdo format, for my own sanity, I printed the files though Acrobat Distiller, and created the pdf files in order for me to print them easily.
One of the things I lucked out on was the placement of the parts, they all fell within the bounds of a Letter size sheet of cardstock.

The model itself is pretty easy, nothing that will trip up anyone with experience.
I can do it, so can you.....

I have waiting in the on deck file, both of Yoshi's trucks, so when the mood strikes me to finish the team, it will also add nicely to my growing Japanese Dakar contingent.